"Idiot."

"Oh, and you're any different? Why the hell are you crying too?"

"I'm gonna smash your mouth in sooner or later."

"Yeah, I know."

"I can punch you right now, you know."

"I know Takemichi time-leaps here from twelve years in the future."

It takes Chifuyu thirty seconds to load those words into his brain, another thirty to understand them, and thirty more to react. His face shifts from blank confusion to wide-eyed shock, like he's about to scream.

"Your reaction's way too dramatic," Kazutora says. He's in a bad mood, so let him be blunt.

"The hell?! How do you know?!"

"Damn it, he's been acting weird as hell. He knows everything before it happens. Only an idiot wouldn't get suspicious. The others probably just don't want to ask. And you and Baji are real slick too - knew the whole time and kept quiet. I had to dig like crazy to figure it out."

And now he gets the consequences for it.

He understands Takemichi has his reasons for not saying anything. Great. Just great. Now he's heartbroken too. A grown man crying twice in one day before twenty-four hours even pass - and both times, someone cries with him.

"You can say whatever you want, but you'll never understand everything he's gone through. Just think about it - time-leaping until your mind's so wrecked you split into multiple personalities. He doesn't even tell me everything. Bet I'm real lucky, huh? So lucky I could die from the misery."

Already irritated, Chifuyu lets it all spill out at once.

He carefully avoids mentioning the things Takemichi personally told him. He shouldn't say them. The hatred between Mikey and Kazutora has only been quiet for a short while. If Kazutora learns the reason Takemichi returns to the past this time, who knows whether he'll stay calm.

Honestly, probably not.

Even Chifuyu felt hatred toward Mikey back then - so Kazutora would be even worse.

Chifuyu leans against the bedframe and stares at the ceiling, though his eyes seem fixed on somewhere far beyond it.

In that future, after Takemichi dies... does he have any life left in him at all?

Or is he nothing more than an empty shell?

Chifuyu can't imagine a life where Takemichi disappears from it.

We're partners.

What meaning would life even have if the person you love most is gone?

Kazutora drops back beside him in the same position.

"So if things go as planned, once he beats Kisaki, he goes back to the future, right?"

"Yeah. He goes back to marry Hinata. That's what he wants."

After that, the two of them fall silent for a while. Two fools suffering the same heartbreak sigh at the exact same time.

"I want him to go back soon. He looks completely worn out right now," Chifuyu says.

"Yeah."

"And one more thing. Since you know now, help me out."

"Hel what?"

"Stop whatever's going on between Mikey and Takemichi."

That makes Kazutora sit bolt upright and frown at him.

"What, surprised? Haven't you noticed Mikey's been weird with Takemichi lately? Yeah, they were close before, but there were limits. Now he's gone way past that. At this point he's practically about to steal her boyfriend right in front of Hinata."

Kazutora immediately covers his face and groans, thrashing around for a moment to shake off the horrible feeling in his chest.

Or rather, the heartbreak.

The truth is, since he goes to the same school as those two, he clings to Takemichi all day too. Hinata sees his attitude, sees his actions, knows exactly how he feels about Takemichi, so the two of them have been secretly competing nonstop this whole time.

And now he has to protect her love life.

This situation is beyond words.

"So what do we do now?"

"Think. Why do you think I asked you for help?"

And just like that, two young men in the depths of heartbreak sit down to create a plan to protect the love lives of their crushes.

Chifuyu decides to name this operation:

The Melancholy Plan.

He wonders if the world of unrequited love is always this pathetic.

While they still can't think of anything, the two start talking again.

"You're the one who gave Hinata my phone number, right?"

"Yep."

"Damn it, she nearly sent me straight to the afterlife."

"You should be grateful she didn't beat you out of jealousy."

"But did you know Kisaki's Hinata's old friend? The world really is small."

"Just found out myself. But don't you think something feels off here?"

Kazutora then lays out all his suspicions. Once again, the two sink into thoughtful silence. With the vivid imagination he's cultivated from reading way too many shoujo manga, Chifuyu blurts out:

"What if that guy likes Hinata?"

The moment the words leave his mouth, Kazutora and Chifuyu stare at each other in dead silence.

Then they both laugh awkwardly like two complete idiots.

"No way, haha. How could that even happen?"

Forget it. Focus on the main issue. No way the drama gets that ridiculous.

Today, Takemichi plans to bring his Bab over and have Draken take a look at it. After running back and forth between Black Dragon, Shibuya, and Ginza lately, it probably needs an oil change and some engine maintenance. He has no idea how to handle any of that himself, so he turns to Draken - the future owner of a motorcycle shop - for help. He already mentions it beforehand, so Draken quickly tells him to come over.

Takemichi stands in the lively, crowded atmosphere of central Shibuya, waiting for Draken to come pick him up. Draken assumes he will not be able to find the place on his own, so he tells him to wait near the station and says he will come get him and bring him upstairs. Takemichi has to act like it is his first time there, so he obediently waits.

Suddenly, he remembers Kimura saying he lives in some apartment building around this downtown area.

Crazy rich.

Still in high school, and his family already buys him his own apartment to live alone in.

Just thinking about him irritates Takemichi again. He still cannot trust him. But for that matter, Kimura is the only one who can help without dragging anyone else into it. Takemichi wonders how much longer it will take him to finish the task he is given.

Takemichi lets out a quiet sigh.

He still cannot believe he actually does that to him.

When he throws the flower vase and makes him bleed, he does not feel guilty or regretful at all. Even when he says things meant to humiliate him, it feels completely normal.

There are even worse things than that before Kimura appears.

I can't blame it on depression.

It is as if I become someone else.

A Takemichi who schemes and acts cruelly, who does not care in the slightest about anyone's suffering, and most of all...

The feeling of ruling over others.

That is not something a hero would do.

Calm down. That is not me.

The turmoil inside Takemichi's chest grows heavier and heavier. Every time he thinks about it, breathing becomes harder, and his whole body feels unbearably heavy.

As if he is slowly sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

A place so deep that even light cannot reach it.

Takemichi lifts his gaze to the vast sky above, where sunlight spills everywhere, searching for something warm, gentle, and forgiving.

While he waits, a group that suddenly appears nearby catches his attention.

Around ten men.

Dressed head to toe in black.

They look like some kind of gang, but not in the style of modern delinquents. A real gang would have matching uniforms, a name, an emblem.

These guys are simply wearing black.

Every one of them is tall and heavily built - probably some pack of thugs. Shibuya is the kind of place where all sorts gather, after all. They draw plenty of attention, but they do not care in the slightest. They look brutal. Dangerous.

Takemichi can practically see the warning hanging above their heads: Best not get involved.

Then one of them - a man with messy hair - looks around. He is a little leaner than the others, but tall and lanky. His gaze sweeps the area before stopping on Takemichi.

Takemichi does not know if it is because he is the only person parked with a motorcycle by the roadside, but the guy keeps staring for far too long.

He even gets the feeling the man is narrowing his eyes, sizing him up.

Takemichi grows uncomfortable and stares back, his own gaze carrying a warning for the man to stop looking at him like that. If the idiot wants to start something here for no reason, he is more than willing to answer.

Right then, Draken appears.

Seeing Takemichi and the strange tension with the group across the street, he immediately assumes they are trying to mess with him. Without hesitation, he steps in front of Takemichi, shielding him, his face stern and brows furrowed as he glares at the man who still has not looked away.

Draken - the number one strongest back in Touman.

Standing behind him, Takemichi smiles faintly.

He does not feel fear the way he once did anymore, but standing behind that broad back still gives him the same sense of safety.

The man's companion notices what is happening and smacks him on the shoulder, telling him to cut it out. Only then does he stop.

Soon after, the group leaves.

No clash breaks out between either side.

A strangely peaceful ending for a bunch of delinquents.

"What is it, Takemichi?"

"No idea. He just suddenly starts staring at me."

"You can never tell what guys like that are thinking. Good thing nothing happens. Come on, let's go. If anything comes up, wait for me a bit. Once I'm done, I'll check your bike."

"It's fine. Just do what you need to do. I can wait."

Takemichi quickly heads off with Draken, no longer wanting to pay any attention to that strange group.

The men in black from earlier walk in the opposite direction. One of them turns to the guy who has been staring at Takemichi.

"What was with you back there? Why were you staring so hard at that kid?"

"That guy looks kinda familiar."

"Familiar?"

"He looks a lot like Hana-san."

"Hana-san? Are you stupid? If it were Hana-san, he would've recognized us and come over already. Why the hell would he just stand there gawking?"

His deep, booming voice is so loud it grates on everyone nearby, making people frown in irritation.

"Oi, shut your mouths already. You're being way too damn noisy."

The one who seems to be their leader finally speaks up to stop the racket. They immediately fall silent and continue on to where they are headed.

Takemichi arrives at the building where Draken lives. He presses the button for the fourth floor.

When they get there, the first thing Takemichi sees is still the same neatly dressed man in a sharp suit, hair slicked back to a shine, standing beside a gorgeous woman wearing nothing but scorching-hot lingerie.

After greeting Draken's foster father and the beautiful woman, Takemichi follows Draken toward his room. But halfway there, they are ambushed by two other women.

"Kenbou, you already went and brought your lover home?"

It may be the first time Takemichi has ever seen Draken stammer around the women of the brothel.

"L-Lover? Don't say... weird stuff. H-He's my friend."

Only then does Takemichi peek out from behind Draken's back, flash the three women a smile, and greet them.

"Hello! I'm Hanagaki, Kenbou's friend."

Takemichi greets them brightly, even using the cute nickname they gave Draken, then looks at him with a mischievous grin.

Draken lets out a helpless little laugh, though his eyes cannot hide the gentle fondness there.

"Takemitchy, you sure learn fast."

He ruffles Takemichi's hair until it becomes a bird's nest. Meanwhile, the two women's eyes only grow brighter and brighter.

Draken quickly throws an arm around Takemichi's shoulders, using his large frame to shield him from those overly interested stares. He lifts a brow at them, signaling them not to say anything stupid.

They only look back at him with expressions that clearly say, Oh, we know already.

Once the two boys finally enter the room, the women speak up at last.

"I'm telling you, if that's not his lover, then it's definitely the one he secretly likes."

"Oh please, and he still denies it. This morning I saw him smiling on the phone so hard his grin nearly reached his ears. Still says no. Did you smell the cologne on him? Since when does that boy ever wear any? Yet he struts out after circling around forever, even sprayed some on."

"Did you see the way Kenbou looked at that kid earlier? Oh my god, it was sweet. Our boy's grown up. He knows love now. Time to marry him off early."

"Haaah... no wonder he's never interested in any of us girls. Turns out somebody already bent him the other way."

"That boy is adorable, though. And those eyes are gorgeous."

"Hey... wanna give those two a little push?"

The beautiful women instantly understand each other. Together, they break into calculating smiles, clearly already plotting some fun little scheme to help their giant little brother Kenbou move his love life along.

Meanwhile, inside Draken's room, Takemichi has no idea why a chill suddenly runs down his spine.

===

My message:

Oop- something spicy is about to happen 🌚 Any guesses?